From the windows of R.C. Molina Elementary School, teacher's aide Carla Noville could see the Camden, N.J., police patrolling at Seventh and Vine streets, keeping the corner by the playground relatively free of the drug dealing that plagues this city. Just last July, Mayor Dana Redd declared Sixth Street, a block over, a "safe corridor" that police would patrol heavily to beat back the corner drug trade.

In a city where dropout rates are consistently among New Jersey's highest and test scores are among the lowest, there were no dropouts at MetEast -- not a charter school, but one run by the city's school district, established with the help of nonprofit Big Picture Learning.

Congressmen from Pennsylvania and New Jersey who have fought the Federal Aviation Administration over flight pattern changes at Philadelphia International Airport say a regional approach will reduce congestion and delays.